Dehydrator



Nov. 29, 1927.

c. s. RONSHEIMER DEHYDRATOR Filed Feb. 18. 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VENTOR.

[2. RDNSHEIITI ER ATTORNEY Nov. 29, 1927.

c. s. RONSHEIMER DEHYDRA'IOR Filed Feb. 18, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTO'R.

a. RUNSHEII'HER ywfim ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 29, 1927,.

Umrso STATES CHARLES GLENN? nonsrrn'nvrnn; or PENN-GROVE; 'eamro'nnmfDEHYDRATOR: 1

Application filed February 18, 1927: "Serial Naif-1693366 p V I l I iThis nvention relates to improvements in dehydrator-sand has particularreference to ineans for securing a. more even drying condition in a.dehydrator plant.

The principal ob ect of this invention 1s to produce a dehydrator whichcan be constructed nore economically than the ordinary dehydrator plant.

A further object is to provide means whereby the drying. condition willexist: in

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and inwhich like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout thesame,. s

Figure 1 is a vertical cross section of my dehydrator plant showing adrying rack Figure 2. is a top'plan view ofmy dehyplaced within thesame, and

drator.

At the present time it is common to construct dehydrator plants thesame, usually consisting of thick wall buildings having a series ofracks therein and doors through whichthe racks inay be removed. In mostof these plants hot air is merely introduced at one end of the plant andallowed to pass over the fruit and then discharged at the other end ofthe plant. This results in an juneven drying, due to the fact that theheated air at the point of entry causes a quick drying of the fruit,while the air at the far end of the/plant is-moisture laden andtherefore this does not dry with the same degree of rapidity as at theother end, the'consequenceis that it is necessary in this type ofplantto move the fruit from time to time with considerable loss of heat dueto the opening of the doors. i

In my improved plant. Iovercome this trouble by combining two blowersiofdifferent capacity and by so arranging them that a pressure islbuilt upwithin the dehydrator plant, and further arranging them so that one ofthe fans causes a re-circulation of the portion of the air within theplant.

7 I In the accompanying drawings wherein for the purpose of illustrationis shown a preferred embodiment of my invention, the nuthe meral 5designates thewalll ofxthedhydrm tor having: doorsfi, 7, andi'8, whichgiveaecess to the drying chamber '9: The. partitionll serves to closeoff? a portion of the plant; so asto. form a heating-chamber 12;

placed. These stovesmay take any:desird form, but I; prefer to use gasfor the purpose ofheat ng the same; because of the fact that theheat'maybe so readilycontrolled; Suspended or otherwise positioned-.2 within thedrying chamber 9 is a fanv housing 145- within which-fla fenrl'tiiispositioned; This fan is ada-pgtedto drawheated? airf from: thez chainber 12 through'an opening 17 in theuparti'k tion 1.1;. It willjbe notedby viewingi-Figure 1, that this opening is; of, less area? than thevertical cross sectional area of the fan housing 14. The fan 16 isrotated through the medium of a chain 18 --which passes over a sprocket19, carried upon a shaft 21. This.

shaft 21 is suitably journaled in bearings 22 and 23. At 24, I haveshown a sprocketover which a chain 26 passes to a sprocket 27. Thissprocket is adapted to drive the shaft of a suction fan 28 mounted in afan 7 housing 29. The capacity of the fan 28 is' within which aplurality of 'stoves13 may be i considerably less than the capacity ofthe fan 16, the purpose of which will be later seen.

The shaft 21 may able manner as by a motor positioned at any convenientpoint. The opening 31 permits the fan 28 to exhaust air from withinthe'chamber 9. At 32 I have shown a conduit through which air may bedrawn from the outer atmosphere, and delivered to a point adjacent thebottom of the heating chamber. This air in passing through the conduitreceives a pre-heatingfrom the heated wall of the drying chamber.

Fruit to be dried is placed upon racks preferably mounted upon castersand moved through the doors of the drying chamber so asto assumetheposition of the rack 33 of Figure 1.

The theory of operation of the dehydrator is as follows: Assuming thatthe required number of racks having fruit thereon have been placed inthe drying chamber by passing the racks through the doors, 6, 7 and 8,and that the stoves 13 have'been lit so as to give ofi heat therefrom,the motor connected to the shaft 21 started, the result will be that thebe driven in any suitfan 16 will. iii-3W sheet from the heating,

chamber 12 through the opening 17 and expel the same into the dryingchamber. At the same time the fan 28 will tend to exhaust this air fromwithin the drying chamher, but as the same has a capacity less than thefan 16, a pressure will be built up witle in the drying chamber. Thisbuilding up of the pressure will result in the fan 16, cansing acirculation of air within the drying chamber and due to the fact thatthe opening 17 is at less size than the vertical cross section area ofthe fan casing 14, a certain portion of the air within the dryingchamber will be re-circulated as indicated by the arrows adjacent thisfan. Consequently due to the circulation there will be no cold pocketsand the same temperature and humidity conditions will exit throughoutthe entire drying chamber. Fresh air will be drawn into the heating,chamber through the conduit 32 at a rate equal to that in which the airis exhausted by the fan 28.

It will thus be seenthat I have produced a dehydrator which willaccomplish all the objects above set forth.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown anddescribed is to be taken as a ire't'crrcd example of the same and thatvarious changes relative to the material, size, shape and arrangement ofparts may be 1 sorted to without departing from the spirit of theinvention or the scope of the subjoined claim.

lilaving thus described my invention, 1 claim:-

In a dehydrator, a drying chamber, a heating chamber, a partitionpositioned between said drying chamber and said heating chamber, aplurality of stoves positioned Within said heating chamber, means forconducting air to said heating chamber, a tan positioned within saiddrying chan'iber said fan being spaced from said partition, saidpartition having an opening formed therein at a point adjacent said fan,the opening of said partition being of smaller area than the verticalcross sectional area of said fan and a second fan of smaller capacitythan said first mentioned tan and remotely positioned with respect tosaid first mentioned fan and adapted to exhaust chamber.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

CHARLES GLENN RONSHEIMER.

air within said drying

